Operation of the wicket gates of a hydraulic turbine must be accomplished simultaneously in unison. This, of course, means that all of the gates must be adjusted and locked in the adjusted position so that a simultaneous movement can be accomplished.
Prior means for locking the wicket gate links against the eccentric pin made the adjustment of the eccentric pins difficult in that the eccentric pin was turned by means of a wrench on a flat portion of the eccentric pin which extended above a locknut. When proper adjustment was attained, the eccentric pin had to be held in the adjusted position with one wrench while the clamping nuts were tightened securely by means of two additional wrenches. The integrity of the adjustment depended on the friction developed between the links and the eccentric pin. Under conditions of vibration, the adjustment was found to have moved thereby destroying the simultaneous closing operation of the wicket gates.
The present invention is directed to providing a more positive means of adjusting the eccentric pin. The invention also concerns itself with providing a positive lock to maintain the eccentric pin in an adjusted position. It is also within the scope of the invention to provide a wicket gate operating mechanism which is precisely adjustable with locking means to maintain the adjustment and which is easily disassembled for maintenance and reassembly to the exact same adjusted relationship without the necessity of a difficult readjustment procedure.